Laurent Ezekiel has been named as WPP's first Chief Marketing and Growth Officer, according to media reports. Ezekiel is a Publicis Groupe veteran and worked with Digitas since 2003 before the company was bought by Publicis. Ezekiel served as President of Digitas North America and International.
Ezekiel will report directly to WPP CEO Mark Read and will be tasked with supporting WPP’s growth strategy, and he will work alongside Chief Client Officer Lindsay Pattison, dividing time between New York and London.
Publicis has recently retained its GlaxoSmithKline's $1.7bn media account and according to reports, Ezekiel handled the company's existing advertising relationship with the pharmaceutical giant.
Ezekiel began his career with Saatchi & Saatchi and previously worked at Grey in London.